After Lu Yaoyao finished greeting her master and senior brothers, she couldn’t wait to go see her Father. Second Senior Brother had already told her that Father was in seclusion at the summit of the Extreme Peak’s snowy mountain, so she headed straight there.
If there was anyone in the world who could go see the Dao Venerable without notice, it was Lu Yaoyao alone. The barrier atop the peak didn’t reject her, and she passed through effortlessly all the way to the summit. Before she even arrived, her clear, sweet little voice was already echoing in the air.
“Father! I’m back! Where are you? Father!”
Out on the cliff edge, nearly blending into the white icy scenery, Yao Jiuxiao sat in meditation. The drifting snowflakes hadn’t even touched his pure white robes before they melted away. His ink-black hair was tied up with a simple wooden hairpin, his handsome features cold and refined, the aura around him sharper than the frigid winds.
At the sound of that soft and sweet call, his brow twitched slightly, and he slowly opened his eyes. Without moving his body, Yao Jiuxiao turned to face the path where the voice had come from.
The next moment, a little cannonball crashed into his arms.
If Yao Jiuxiao hadn’t been so steady, he might have been knocked right off the cliff by the impact.
“Faaather!” Lu Yaoyao’s voice stretched like a song, rising and falling in tune. Though she always claimed she’d grown up, the instinct to rely on her parent after so long apart made her unable to resist acting spoiled.
She thought to herself, ‘Today I’ll be a baby—tomorrow I’ll grow up again!’ So she continued to act spoiled without any burden.
“Father, we perfectly completed our mission! It turned out the chaos at Yanhuo Mountain was caused by a newborn spiritual flame, and I was lucky enough to pick it up and subdue it! Look, Father!”
Lu Yaoyao promptly summoned Wuhao from her spiritual consciousness and proudly showed it off. “Not worse than yours, right?”
The palm-sized flame hovered in mid-air, bouncing up and down like it was throwing a tantrum. A bratty, childlike voice rang out in Lu Yaoyao’s mind—
“I helped you so much! What’s wrong with letting me absorb a few extra days of aura? It doesn’t affect you at all. Watch out, next time I might not help you…!”
Ever since it had heroically protected Lu Yaoyao and her group in the Absolute Domain and earned five days of nurturing as a reward, Wuhao had seen a massive boost in cultivation. Even its flame had even grown noticeably plumper. The joy of passively skyrocketing in strength had been so addictive that after the five days were up, Wuhao wasn’t satisfied and began acting up in Lu Yaoyao’s spiritual consciousness day and night.
Lu Yaoyao knew all too well how pushy this wicked flame could be, so she blocked it out and only released it again today.
“We agreed on five days. Not a day more or less.” Lu Yaoyao said with heartfelt seriousness, “Wuhao, we have to be honest and trustworthy.”
“Let me absorb just two more days! One more day, even!” Wuhao whined pitifully.
Lu Yaoyao quickly changed the subject. “Enough. Let me introduce you to a friend.”
“What friend?” Wuhao snorted disdainfully. Its round flame eyes glanced sideways—only to see a terrifyingly imposing two-legged creature.
The moment that being gave it a single indifferent glance, Wuhao nearly dropped to its knees and shouted its surrender.
‘Th-this two-legged creature is way too scary—! Is Master trying to scare me into behaving with this terrifying creature? Okay, okay, Master wins—woohoo…’
Lu Yaoyao had no idea about Wuhao’s rich inner drama. She turned to look at Yao Jiuxiao. “Father!”
Yao Jiuxiao didn’t respond, but the next moment, another cluster of flame appeared before them. It floated in front of Lu Yaoyao, the faint outer blaze gently brushing her cheek before drifting upward into the air. Unlike Wuhao’s deep blood-red hue, this flame glowed with a soft blue and floated there quietly, appearing well-behaved and gentle.
It took Lu Yaoyao a few years to learn that this flame—the same one her Father used to cook her baby food and heat her bath—was actually the water-attributed flame among the five elements heavenly grade celestial fire, and it had developed sentience.
This flame looked delicate and refined, but it was several times more powerful than Wuhao. Compared to it, Wuhao was just a baby among babies.
When Wuhao saw its fellow flame appear so suddenly, it was stunned into silence. The noisy childish voice instantly vanished.
Lu Yaoyao compared the two. Even by appearance, they were complete opposites—one was like a gentle lady, the other like a mischievous little brat.
“Wuhao, greet Big Sister Shuilan,” Lu Yaoyao said. Ever since learning that the flame was sentience and that this one had a feminine voice, she had named it Shuilan. Apparently, the flame liked the name very much, and every time they met after that, it would come over to show affection.
After a moment, Wuhao’s timid voice echoed out, “H-hello, Big Sister.”
Lu Yaoyao blinked in surprise. This was the first time she’d ever heard Wuhao sound so polite—looks like it really liked Shuilan!
The pale-blue flame swayed slightly in response, and Lu Yaoyao asked, “Sister Shuilan, could you take Wuhao to play?”
The flame swayed again, then slowly floated away. Seeing Wuhao still frozen in place, Lu Yaoyao nudged him, “Wuhao, go with her!”
Wuhao dazedly responded, then wobbled after the blue flame.
Lu Yaoyao was beaming. Sister Shuilan was way stronger than Wuhao—if Wuhao got naughty, she could easily keep him in check!
Now relieved from looking over a mischievous brat, Lu Yaoyao snuggled up beside Yao Jiuxiao, her small hands clutching his robe. “Father, do you know Moxuan City? I heard the current City Lord Hua used to be Master’s fiancée. Did you know that?”
“We passed through Moxuan City and stayed there for a few days. City Lord Hua even invited us to a banquet, and we couldn’t refuse, so we went. We were very cautious but still got unknowingly caught in a trap. The scent of Aura Concealment Herb is really something. Father, would you lose all your aura if you smelled it too?”
“After we left Moxuan City, we were ambushed. They had a special artifact that could create an Absolute Domain—it completely cut off our presence so no one could sense us! Amazing, right? But we’re super smart, and we turned the tables and killed them…”
Lu Yaoyao chattered away, full of pride. There were very few cultivators who could kill enemies several levels above them like they had. It was definitely something worth bragging about for a lifetime!
“I thought I was already very awesome, but turns out there are still so many things that can suppress me. From now on, I’ll be super cautious and never be careless again!”
“We also participated in an auction…”
Yao Jiuxiao had been expressionless as he listened to his daughter’s nonstop rambling. But when she mentioned being ambushed while completely powerless, his brow furrowed. Attacked by cultivators several realms above while stripped of spiritual aura—and he hadn’t even sensed it. The fact that they had come back in one piece was mostly sheer luck.
The incident with Mo Liuying back then had caused quite a stir, and even he had heard of it. But he hadn’t intervened or paid special attention, and the matter had passed. Now, that same grudge was being taken out on young disciples?
“Father, we also picked a lot of Hehe Spark Blossom. Do you know how to brew wine? We drank the legendary Spark Blossom Wine at Tianyan Sect—it was so good!”
“Oh right, Daddy came to see me. He missed me. Father, do you miss me too?” Lu Yaoyao smiled sweetly.
Yao Jiuxiao patted the back of her head. “What was he doing here?” Wasn’t he supposed to be in seclusion back in the Devil Realm?
Lu Yaoyao’s eyes rolled. “Daddy wasn’t doing anything. He came just to see me—and help me with something.”
“Don’t worry about the details—I have something really, really important to tell you. I made a good friend in Luotian City—his name is Zhong Wushuang. He was poisoned in the womb, and although it was cured, the aftereffects were severe. He can’t cultivate and his face is disfigured. Do you have any way to treat this?”
Lu Yaoyao described Zhong Wushuang’s condition in detail. “They say Master and even the Sect Leader of Medicine Sect have tried treating him, but nothing worked. Father, do you have any solution?”
The Medicine Sect and her Master were at the top of the cultivation world when it came to healing and alchemy. If even they couldn’t do anything, then perhaps only her Father, who was knowledgeable in countless things, might have a sliver of hope.
Yao Jiuxiao replied, “Each field has its experts. I don’t specialize in medicine or alchemy. If even your master can’t cure it, then I am also powerless.” He was a sword cultivator and only knew the bare basics of medicine. As for that time he had healed that silver wolf cub, it was only because he happened to know a prescription for congenital deficiencies—it was a pure coincidence.
“The Peak Master of the West Sixth Peak, your Martial Aunt Miao, is fond of wine and good at brewing. You can go ask her.”
His voice was unhurried as he patiently answered Lu Yaoyao’s questions, then added earnestly, “There’s always someone better out there. No matter how powerful you are, never underestimate others—especially during a fight. No matter how weak they seem, you must stay vigilant.”
Lu Yaoyao nodded repeatedly. “I understand, Father.”
Yao Jiuxiao looked at her. “You seem to have gained some insight. Your cultivation has improved quite a bit.”
Lu Yaoyao puffed up proudly. “Of course.”
“Show me your improvement in swordplay.”
Lu Yaoyao: “…”
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What exactly is a water-attributed flame? How does that even work.